In a statement, the Pancyprian Organization of the Blind made a public complaint, talking about the lack of respect for students with disabilities and their parents, while at the same time stating that the Ministry of Education and School Taxes serve foreign interests to children.
Specifically, two blind brothers, 13 and 14 years old, have not gone to school yet, since according to the announcement, the family was not allowed to choose school escorts.
This announcement:
"Blind children with a blind father are among the victims of the distorted political employment of school escorts pursued by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth, which blatantly violates the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which committed to implement our country.
According to these international conventions, children and families of people with disabilities should be actively and fully involved in decision-making processes on issues that directly concern them.
However, the Ministry of Education, based on a Circular prepared behind closed doors and in the absence of children with disabilities and their families, seems to serve interests other than those of children with disabilities, considering that School Counselors selected by irregular procedures, by people who do not know or have the necessary knowledge about it, excluding as School Escorts people who are more suitable for the position and are able to work harmoniously with the children for whom they are hired.
He referred to the blind father in a particularly provocative and disparaging way that even in the case of interviews for the selection of his children's escorts by the seven-member recruitment committee, "you will be one and we are six".
As a result, his 13-year-old son and his 14-year-old daughter do not go to school this year and according to the policy of the Ministry, the involvement of the police is expected in the next few days. This is the Ministry's response to those who claim their rights in the 21st century.
His blind children are very upset, his daughter is afraid and refuses to eat, and they are seriously worried about the development of the issue. Their anxiety extends to the possible consequences of their inability to cooperate with the School Escorts that have been pre-selected and want to be imposed by the Ministry of Education and the School Tax Office, which seems to be relentless.
The obsession of the Ministry and the School Tax Office for the specific attendants causes concern, and specifically for whose interests are ultimately served through the policies and practices followed and promoted by the institution of the School Assistant, since the views are not taken into account at all. of the children themselves and their parents.
The Pancyprian Organization of the Blind is waiting for the time to come, when our country will be transformed into a European, prosperous democratic state, which respects the fundamental freedoms and human rights of its citizens. That is, when will follow the example of the member states of the European Union and especially the standards of western countries, where the institution of the school attendant ensures the proper functioning of the school attendant's position and the relationship he will have with the school staff. Specifically, the responsibility for the education of students should be borne by the teaching staff with advice from the special educator and the School Escort will have an auxiliary role in education and will take care mainly of issues of inclusion and enhancement of student socialization. In various European countries, the choice of school attendant is made by the parents (parent-employer model). That is, the decision to hire a caregiver for their child is made with the effective participation of the parents in the recruitment process, while ensuring that children with disabilities themselves have the right to express their views and that their views are fully respect for the school attendants they deem appropriate, but also the reasonable adjustments they deem necessary for their learning and assessment.
Pancyprian Organization of the Blind
Nicosia, September 17, 2021 ".
